Since the telegraph, there have been an ever increasing number of devices that accomplish remote, electronic, real-time participation in collaborative tasks. The proliferation of such media these devices make available will increase the complexity of managing electronic collaboration. The following tasks in communication systems will therefore become more onerous to manage as time advances:                device connection semantics;        contact lists;        media transience/limited term use;        robustness and fault-tolerance        user identification and affiliation;        user and collaboration activity logging;        mixed media collaborations;        security and privacy;        social interaction and teamwork.        
Communication over the Internet has become a popular social and business tool. More and more people are communicating over the Internet through various means, including Internet forums, instant messaging systems or, more recently, Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoiP) programmes.
Internet forums allow a user to review a number of grouped topics stemming from a parent subject. Topics range from television/movies, music, sports, computers, professional interest and many more. The disadvantage with forums is that the media is static, and they generally do not provide the opportunity for immediate feedback. Often a user will make an entry onto a forum and leave, returning at a later time to review any replies that have been received in response to their input for a discussion. Also forums can become cluttered with discussion topics remaining on the forum page long after any of the members have finished discussing the topic.
Instant messaging (IM) is a popular medium for communicating over the Internet. It provides a more real-time discussion, as people involved in a discussion have to be at their computer making use of the programme to engage in communication. This form of communication is generally a one on one experience, unless other members in a user's “friends list” are also online and willing to join the conversation. Whilst it is possible to add people to your friends list, a search is required so not all users who are using an IM service are automatically visible to a user of an IM programme. These systems allow users to consciously think about a reply before they type their comments and send it to a recipient. The sole requirement of a keyboard can also provide problems for people who have trouble typing or are illiterate.
Recent developments in Internet programmes have resulted in the creation of programmes using VoiP, allowing people to communicate with each other over the Internet. There are VoiP programmes available, which operate in a similar manner to a telephone. Any multi-line connection that is available requires all users to have contact details pertaining to the other parties for contact to be initiated and a multi-line conversation to take place.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to overcome or substantially ameliorate the disadvantages of the prior art by providing a real-time communication and collaboration system for connecting people and sharing information across multiple protocols.